In a world often filled with headlines of hardship and division, it’s easy to lose sight of the goodness that still exists around us.
Yet, sometimes all it takes is a single image to remind us of the kindness, compassion, and hope that humanity is capable of.
In this blog post, we’ve curated a collection of photographs that capture these very moments that will restore your faith in humanity.
Kevin Briggs, a former California Highway Patrol officer, is known for preventing over 200 people from ending their own lives on the Golden Gate Bridge. In this 2005 photo, Briggs is seen talking Kevin Berthia out of jumping from the bridge. Berthia later went on to marry and have children.
In 2012, John Unger was photographed cradling his dog in Lake Superior to help him sleep. His dog, suffering from severe arthritis and with only weeks to live, found relief in the water as John brought him to the lake every night to ease his pain during his final days.
During the 2011 Egyptian revolution, Christians formed a human chain to protect Muslims during their prayers. In return, Muslims created a human chain around churches to safeguard them from attacks during a time of rising tensions.
In 2017, a Rohingya Muslim man carried his immobile parents nearly 100 miles to escape death squads in Myanmar. After seven days of travel, he reached Bangladesh safely.
In 1969, at a time when African Americans were frequently excluded from sharing swimming pools with white people, Mr. Rogers invited Officer Clemmons to join him in a pool, defying racial segregation norms.
In 2015, Aron Culling purchased turtles from a food market and set them free in the sea.
After requiring 13 liters of blood for surgery at the age of thirteen, a man named James Harrison vowed to donate blood once he turned 18. It was then discovered that his blood contained a rare antigen that cured Rhesus disease. He has donated blood around 1,000 times, saving over 2,000,000 lives. Image via LiveScience.
In September 2019, Emma Schols risked her life to save all six of her children from their burning home, moving from room to room and floor to floor. Despite suffering severe burns, including bleeding, skin loss, and her hair burning, she persevered. Emma sustained 93% burn injuries but survived.
A man from New Delhi started a school under a bridge to provide the city’s poorest children with an education. Believing every child deserves to learn, he now educates over 200 children from nearby slums daily. Photo via Sky.
For over 30 years, Anthony Cymerys went to a local park in Hartford every Wednesday with his chair, clippers, and a car battery to power them. He offered free haircuts to the homeless, asking only for a hug in return.
In 2014, a courageous boy named Belal, in his early teens, saved a young deer from drowning by holding the fawn above his head as he waded through a rushing river.
A young gorilla receives comfort from a park ranger after tragically discovering that his mother had been killed by poachers. Photo via The Dodo.
In 2019, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, a heartwarming moment unfolded during five-year-old Michael’s adoption hearing when his entire kindergarten class showed up at the courthouse, holding red hearts to show their love and support. One by one, his classmates stood up, declaring Michael their best friend.
The 1973 Pulitzer Prize-winning photo “Burst of Joy,” by Sal Veder, shows a former U.S. POW joyfully reuniting with his family.
In 1991, Princess Diana made headlines by shaking hands with an AIDS patient without wearing gloves. This act was groundbreaking, as there was widespread fear and misunderstanding about how HIV was transmitted at the time.
In this 2017 photograph, 83-year-old retired Marine Sgt. William H. Cox stands guard one last time for his comrade, Sgt. James ‘Hollie’ Hollingsworth. Their bond began in 1968 in a bunker where they took refuge from rockets and mortars. They made a pact to reconnect every New Year’s Eve if they both survived the war, a tradition they maintained for an incredible five decades.
After years of assisting the homeless in St. Louis, Missouri, Jake Austin noticed that hygiene supplies often went unused due to a lack of safe places to use them. To address this, he launched a mobile shower project called Shower to the People.
A Serbian soldier is shown resting with his father, who came to visit him at the front line near Belgrade during WWI.
This 1981 photo shows legendary boxer Muhammad Ali persuading a man not to jump from the ninth floor of a high-rise in Los Angeles.
In 2013, Dan Black, a paralyzed man from Wales, sacrificed his own dream of walking again to fund a young boy’s treatment. After years of saving £20,000 for stem cell therapy, he chose to donate the money to a five-year-old boy in need of the same treatment.
After an 80-year-old man from England moved into a retirement home, his 98-year-old mother chose to move in as well to care for him. She remarked, “You never stop being a mum.”
Aitzaz Hasan, a 15-year-old Pakistani student, sacrificed his life to prevent a bomber from entering his school of 2,000 students. His father said, “My son made his mother cry but saved hundreds of mothers from crying for their children.
In 2012, 24-year-old Anthony Omari, who worked at a Kenyan orphanage, fought off three machete-wielding attackers to protect the children. Despite sustaining an 11-inch facial gash, he managed to chase them away. Following the incident, Penn State student Ben Hardwick raised $65,000 on Reddit, far surpassing his $2,000 goal, to build a larger protective fence for the orphanage.
In Tennessee, a group of nine women known as “The 9 Nanas” secretly carried out acts of kindness for over 30 years. Even their husbands were unaware as they met at dawn to anonymously pay bills, buy clothes, and bake cakes for those in need. Their mission was simply to “create happiness.”
In 2017, a homeless man called Elmer Alvarez discovered a $10,000 check on the street intended for a real estate broker and made sure it was returned. Moved by his honesty, the broker helped him secure housing and set up a job interview. A year later, the man was serving on the board of one of the broker’s foundations.
A man giving his shoes to a homeless girl in Rio de Janeiro.
In 2019, Brazilian mother Silvia Grecco won FIFA’s Best Fan Award after being seen in the crowd narrating an entire soccer match to her blind 11-year-old son.
A biker group from Arizona helps protect child abuse victims from their abusers during the prosecution process. They stand guard outside the child’s home at night if the abuser hasn’t been jailed yet and accompany the child to court, shielding them from having to face the abuser.
Li Jingzhi, a Chinese woman, was reunited with her son after he was kidnapped in 1988. For over 32 years, she traveled across China, visiting 20 provinces and hundreds of towns in search of him. Along the way, she helped reunite 29 other children with their families. This photo shows her embracing with her son.
At 21, Terry Fox, who was battling incurable cancer and had his right leg amputated, embarked on a 3,339-mile run across Canada in just 143 days. His goal was to raise money for charity before his death, and he succeeded, raising over $24 million.
In 2007, a U.S. Marine in Iraq named Brian Dennis befriended a stray dog he called Nubs. After Nubs was stabbed, Dennis nursed him back to health, forming a strong bond. When the unit moved, Nubs tracked Dennis down, walking 70 miles through a war-torn desert to find him. Touched by the loyalty, Dennis flew Nubs home with him.
In 2020, Noah Woods, a 5-year-old boy from Georgia, woke up to flames in his bedroom. He quickly grabbed his 2-year-old sister and escaped through a window. After getting her to safety, he went back inside the burning house to rescue the family dog. Noah was later honored as an honorary Bartow County firefighter.
In 2014, 57-year-old Yasuo Takamatsu from Japan learned SCUBA diving to search for his wife’s remains, who was presumed lost in the 2011 tsunami. Her last email read, “I want to go home,” fueling his determination to fulfill her wish. As of 2022, Takamatsu continues his search, refusing to give up hope.
Chen Si dedicates his weekends to patrolling China’s largest bridge to prevent people from jumping off. So far he has saved over 400 people.
In 2020, the small French village of Chambon-sur-Lignon received a surprise $2.4 million gift from the will of 90-year-old Austrian Eric Schwam. Schwam, who had passed away, left the money to thank the village for rescuing him and his family from Nazi persecution eight decades earlier.
Dale Schroeder, a modest Iowa carpenter who worked at the same company for 67 years, left behind a surprising fortune when he passed away in 2005. Without a family of his own, he used his savings to fund college education for 33 students.
During a protest in Brazil, an officer requested, “Please, no incidents today; it’s my birthday.” Shortly after, a group of protesters surprised him with a cake, which moved him to tears.
In 2015, Turkish newlyweds Fethullah Üzümcüoğlu and Esra Polat used their wedding banquet to feed 4,000 Syrian refugees.
In 2014, Swedish bus driver Andre Grandin stopped to comfort a young girl crying in the street. After reassuring her, he silently returned to the bus and continued his route. It was later revealed that the girl had been upset by other children. Photo by Emma Gustafsson.
In 2016, a group of Disney princesses filled a Michigan courtroom to make 5-year-old Danielle’s adoption by Jim and Sarah Koning extra magical and unforgettable. Photo via Business Insider.
In 2019, 4,855 people stood in the rain for hours to be tested as potential matches to help save Oscar Saxelby-Lee’s life. DKMS, the charity that conducts stem cell testing, noted that their previous record for participation in a registration event was 2,200 people.
Photo from May 15, 2019, in Washington, DC, shows Cora Rose, a double amputee dog, balanced on her hind legs as she watched Zach Skow repair her cart on the street. Photo by Kevin Lamarque / Reuters.
Jim Cummings, the voice behind “Winnie the Pooh,” brings joy to sick children in hospitals by speaking to them in Pooh’s lovable voice. In one touching moment, he called a young girl fighting cancer, and her mother revealed it was the first time her daughter had smiled in six months. Photo via LA Times.
A Victorian couple laugh while getting their pictures taken in the 1890’s.
In 1981, Dr. Michael Shannon saved a premature baby boy. Thirty years later, in 2011, that same baby, now paramedic Chris Trokey, rescued Dr. Shannon from a burning SUV after a collision.
During World War I, French mime Marcel Marceau used his skills to rescue at least 70 Jewish children. Disguised as a Boy Scout leader, he led them on long walks to the Swiss border, using mime to keep them entertained and quiet to avoid detection by German soldiers. After the war, Marceau became one of the world’s most famous mime artists, continuing his career until his death in 2007 at age 84.
In 2017, 15-year-old Christian Marian Becheanu heroically rescued a toddler trapped in a pipe in Segarcea, Romania. After 11 hours of failed attempts by others, Christian was lowered into the narrow pipe and successfully saved the child.
A French woman greets an American soldier two days after the liberation of Strasbourg, France, in 1944.
In 2015, a father saved his son’s life after doctors mistakenly declared him brain-dead and began removing him from life support. Armed with a gun, the father barricaded himself in his son’s hospital room and faced a SWAT stand-off until his son squeezed his hand. Miraculously, the son went on to recover.
A little girl rescued from Masnieres with a British soldier at Gouzeaucourt, 22 November 1917.
Peter Tabichi, from the remote village of Pwani in Kenya’s Rift Valley, donated 80 percent of his salary to help poor students in his community. Here he is receiving the 2019 Global Teacher Prize, along with a $1 million award.
Mieno Yusuke rescued a cat from drowning in a canal using an umbrella. He was driving when he saw the cat leap out of the path of a car and fall into the roadside canal. Photo by save you green.
Two Norwegian men rescuing a baby lamb drowning in the ocean.
In 1994, during her grandson’s Oath of Enlistment ceremony for the Russian army in Volgograd, a grandmother gently covered his ears to keep them warm. The moment was captured by photographer Nikolai Ignatiev.
